MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” panelists unloaded on Democratic Illinois Rep. Luis Gutierrez for attacking the military service of White House chief of staff Gen. John Kelly, who is also a Gold Star father after losing his son in Afghanistan.
Gutierrez, who has never served in the military, attacked Gen. Kelly as a “disgrace to the uniform” after President Trump announced the gradual rollback of the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which legal experts had said was on constitutionally shaky ground.
Representative Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) REUTERS/Gary Cameron
“As far as the congressman and other irresponsible members of Congress are concerned, they have the luxury of saying what they want as they do nothing and have almost no responsibility,” Kelly told Fox News in response. “They can call people liars but it would be inappropriate for me to say the same thing back at them. As my blessed mother used to say ’empty barrels make the most noise.'”
The “Morning Joe” panelists agreed with Kelly, and ripped into Gutierrez.
“He should be ashamed of himself,” said columnist Mike Barnicle.
“Talk about the disgraceful, outrageous words used against a man who has given his entire life and his son to this country in service and uniform,” added host Joe Scarborough.
“He should be ashamed of himself and should apologize but he won’t because of the partisan, polarized nature of Washington D.C.,” Barnicle said, adding that Kelly is “absolutely right.”
“Congressman Gutierriez belongs to a body of people who work maybe two hours a week. They’re going to work legislatively, I think, what, four days this month, the remainder of the month to get things done. They’ve had DACA on their desks for over a year and they have done nothing, and that’s his retort? Please. Stop it.
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